Offering hope and encouragement for life, writing, and living a thoughtful life.

Thursday, August 02, 2012

Writer's block and how to get unstuck

Last Thursday I discussing writer’s block and strategies to get your productivity back on track. Writer's block doesn’t have to paralyze your writing progress. I gave you the first few suggestions,and here are some more methods to get your fingers flying over the keyboard:

1. Work on another project for a while.
• If you can, switch gears to another project you have in the works or make notes on a subsequent project you’ve been thinking about. You may return to your “blocked” project with fresh eyes after a little time away from it.

2. Read a great book.
• Sometimes reading great writing gives you the itch to write yourself.

3. Try to write out of your genre.
• Write non-fiction if you’re a fiction writer. It could be just a simple letter to a friend or a short article on craft that you can share with writing buddies.
• Write a poem.
• If you write non-fiction, practice fiction techniques to use in your non-fiction writing.

4. Try freewriting.
• Give yourself a time limit of 10-15 minutes and let your fingers fly over the keyboard. Even if you’re writing crazy nonsense, you may spark a thought or idea that will springboard you back to work.

5. Take a creative fieldtrip.
• Visit a museum, listen to soul-stirring music, go to the movies.
• Sometimes spending time in other creative environments, spurs the desire to be creative in your own work.

Do you have any tips on getting unstuck that you can share? Please do.